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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26579290">Ghosts In The Castle</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/conroy_the_frog/pseuds/conroy_the_frog'>conroy_the_frog</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Merlin fics [8]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Merlin (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Canon Era, Established Relationship, M/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 12:00:26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>589</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26579290</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/conroy_the_frog/pseuds/conroy_the_frog</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Arthur has gone to make peace with the druids, leaving Merlin in the castle.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Merlin fics [8]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1489961</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>61</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Ghosts In The Castle</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Another short piece while I'm avoiding studying for my exams.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The castle was just so quiet. It was almost as though there was no one walking around at all – although everyone else told him he was just being dramatic. But it did feel weird. It felt empty, like all the people who were there didn’t matter as much as the ones who weren’t.</p><p>Merlin had thought he would be able to enjoy the time while Arthur was away, do something for himself for once, but that had been crushed when Gaius had immediately put him to work, making tonics and cleaning up the chamber, sorting bottles that looked as though they hadn’t been touched in years. Merlin was currently combing through a stack of papers and books, sorting out what was relevant and what was written three billion years ago and could be thrown in the fire. Not that Gaius would ever let him do that, he seemed to think he would need everything someday.</p><p>He signed and placed down the sheets of chicken scratch. There was literally no point to any of this when it would just go back on a shelf, sitting there for the bugs anyway. He stood up, stretching out his aching legs.</p><p>“And where do you think you’re going?” Gaius asked, not even looking up from the pot he had over the fire.</p><p>“To gather herbs. I’m going to go crazy if I keep doing this any longer,” Merlin replied, picking up his bag and leaving without waiting for a reply.</p><p>He walked through the stone passages, a little creeped out by the silence that followed him. He almost felt like a ghost, just wandering the corridors.</p><p>
  <em>Gods, I can’t wait to get out of here. </em>
</p><p>It didn’t take very long to reach the edge of the forest, not when he was hurrying through the halls like was being chased by some magical creature that wanted to eat him. Merlin started walking slower, letting his magic spread out a little bit. It was always so suffocating in the castle, where there just wasn’t any magic around. In the forest, where no matter how many patrols Uther could have sent out to kill the magical creatures, there would always be that comforting feeling of magic that always swarmed around forests.</p><p>The best thing about loosening his control a little was that he could feel <em>everything. </em>As his magic spread itself out through the forest he could feel the heartbeats of the animals, the very life essence of every tree and every bush and every individual leaf.</p><p>Years ago, letting so loose would have just been so overwhelming that Merlin would have probably started crying, but now it was just the most delightful thing in the world.</p><p>He must have sat there, thinking about absolutely nothing at all an hour at least, before standing, quickly picking some herbs, and heading back to the castle.</p><p> </p><p>When he opened the door, Gaius was still sitting over the fire, but now food was sitting on the table. Gaius motioned for him to sit down, and they both ate their food.</p><p>“Do you think they will be ok?” Merlin asked, voice quiet.</p><p>“You know they will be fine. It’s the druids, they are no danger to Arthur.”</p><p>Merlin nodded weakly, not convinced.</p><p>Gaius sighed. “Merlin, you know he has to do this on his own. They need to feel like he is welcoming them because he wants to, not because you want him to.”</p><p>“I know. I just… I just miss him.”</p><p>“I know you do, I know you do.”</p><p> </p>
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